Chapter 2: A Smug Smile
Disclaimer: FMA characters are not mine. I just write the plot here. Don't mind me :P
The morning after Ed suggested that he and Alphonse take a vacation, the two young men were on a train bound for Resembool. There were only a few passengers traveling that day, so the atmosphere in the train was quiet and peaceful.
"Brother, are you sure General Mustang won't get mad at us for leaving like this? I mean, we didn't even tell him where we were going."
Al sat across his older brother. He was feeling uneasy about the idea of going home without telling anybody, not even Winry or Auntie Pinako.
Ed was sitting comfortably on the seat beside the window and had been wearing a big smile since they left their quarters early that morning. Seeing Al's concerned look, Ed explained "I left a letter on Mustang's desk. I'm sure he'll get it." With that last sentence, Ed stared out the window and his smile grew even more...to the point that he looked scary.
"I have a bad feeling about this." Al sighed.
When the train got to the Resembool station, they were surprised to see two familiar faces.
"Fletcher? Is that really you?" the younger Elric exclaimed as he ran towards his friends.
Fletcher and Russell, their old friends from Xenotime were talking to one of the personnel near the entrance of the small station. From afar, Ed could see that Russell had grown taller and the younger brother, Fletcher was about his height now but aside from that, nothing much has changed about them. Ed mumbled something inaudible under his breath.
"Huh? Do I know you from somewhere?" Fletcher asked, a bit embarrassed when Al stopped in front of him.
"Oh, it's me, Alphonse Elric. I got my real body back you see."
Neither of the two believed poor Al so Ed decided to step in.
"Ed? Is that really you? Al? That's amazing!l." Russell asked. Seeing the Elric brothers brought back some good memories and this made Fletcher's older brother smile.
Fletcher explained that they were on their way to visit a nearby town but they got off on the wrong station. Knowing how tiring the trip would've been for the two, the Elric brothers invited their friends to stay with them for the night. Russell tried to turn down the offer saying that it would be too much to ask of them.
"But you spent most of our money buying old alchemy books in the last town we visited." Fletcher reminded his Russell.
Al laughed at this since Russell's personality reminded him too much of his own older brother.
"It's settled then. Since you're broke, you're staying with us." Ed said with mocking tone in his voice.
"If we were in their shoes, you would've spent all our money on food." Al added.
Everyone except for Ed laughed at the young state alchemist's voracious appetite. The old friends talked about their experiences and what they have been up to as they walked to Winry's house.
It was certainly a big surprise for Winry to see Ed and Al standing before her when she opened the door. She greeted her two best friends with a big hug. Ed introduced his friends and Winry happily welcomed them in to the house. Hearing all the commotion downstairs, Auntie Pinako came down from the second floor and just like Winry, she was very surprised to see the young Elrics back home.
"It's nice to see that both of you are well. I do hope this particular visit would be a pleasant one."
Come to think of it, the only time the Elric brothers got to visit their Aunt and Winry was when they needed a place to hide or when Ed needed repairs done on his auto mail limbs.
"It's nothing like that Auntie Pinako. We're here to have fun and forget about work even for just a short time." Ed mused happily as he walked towards the sofa to relax.
Winry immediately knew that something was wrong. Though it may not necessarily involve businesses regarding state, she could tell that Ed was hiding something from her. But in that particular moment, she just let all her worries slide so that she could truly be happy for her friends' return. She then asked everyone to sit at the dining table across the sofa so that they could all be comfortable.
"You guys have good timing coming here." Al cheerfully said after he sat on the wooden chair.
"Fletcher and I are very happy to be here. Actually, we were kinda hoping Ed grew an inch by now but I guess we were hoping for too much." Russell, the older brother joked as he looked at Ed.
Ed, who was lying on a couch just across the dining table where everybody was, heard the taller blonde's comment about his height. In his rage, Ed jumped off the couch and screamed at Russell's face "WHO ARE YOU CALLING A MIDGET THAT YOU CAN ONLY SEE THROUGH A MICROSCOPE!"
"Brother, calm down. Russell didn't say that. You always exaggerate whenever people say something about your height."
"That's not the point, Al." Ed exclaimed, catching his breath from all the screaming he just did. Everybody in the room laughed at the spat between the two older brothers.
Later that evening, Ed was tasked to throw out the trash after everyone had finished eating their meal. Reluctant as Ed seemed, Winry could almost always talk him into doing anything.
"I'm supposed to be a guest here. Why do I have to do all the work." Ed mumbled as he closed the lid of the garbage bin made of tin.
The night air was cool and the fresh smell of the grasslands revitalized the young alchemist's tired body. He never felt this way back in Central. The street always seemed crowded with people and cars and the nights in the city were never this peaceful.
"You seem to have a lot in mind lately, Ed." A voice came from the porch.
"Oh, it's you Russell. Tch. I guess it's 'coz I still haven't decided what to do yet now that Al got his body back."
"That's not what I meant. I know you'll eventually find a new path to take. You're the one who taught us to choose our own way and to continue moving forward."
Ed made his way up the porch, stopped beside Russell and said "So what do you want to know?"
"It's…it's nothing. Forget it."
The young state alchemist blinked at this with an annoyed expression on his face. He didn't get the chance to get mad because there was suddenly some loud and cheerful laughter coming from inside. Ed could see from the window that Winry, Al and Fletcher were playing a game of charades and it wasn't like him to be left out.
"It looks like fun. Let's go inside and join them, Russell."
Russell took a moment before he was able to reply. "…Sure. Why not?"
The whole time the Elrics were enjoying the first night of their short vacation, a dark gloomy cloud hovered over the office of a certain dark-haired General back in Central. It has been this way for almost the whole day. General Mustang stood behind his desk facing the window, staring at the lights from the city. The Flame Alchemist had not spoken to anybody for a while now not even to his loyal subordinate, Riza Hawkeye.
The General's day started out just fine. The birds were singing outside and the sun was shining brightly on his way to work that morning. He had a great time last night even though his date with Maria was a disaster. Nothing could ruin his exceptionally good mood, he thought. He was really looking forward to giving Ed a long and sarcastic lecture for not waiting for him the other night even though he told the younger man not to wait for him.
"Young soldiers should have the initiative to do their job without being told. Elric will just have to miss a day of work for being irresponsible." Mustang mused as he walked towards his desk.
The General's subordinates were glad to see him in such high spirits and they thought this was going to be a good day for all of them. Maybe, just maybe the General would finally do some work today, they all thought with a sparkle of hope in their eyes.
As soon as the Flame Alchemist sat down on his comfortable chair, he noticed a letter addressed to him lying on his large wooden desk. Hawkeye was delivering a pile of documents Mustang had to read and sign that day and she managed to get a glimpse of the letter from behind her superior. There was a large 'poorly' drawn picture of Ed who was sticking his tongue out, and at the bottom portion of the paper it said "Be back in a couple of days. –Ed-"
Mustang instantly burned the note with his alchemy. Riza could hear the General curse under his breath. Everyone in the room witnessed the note turn to ashes.
"I guess this isn't going to be a good day after all." They all chorused.
Their leader made several excuses not to do any work that day. He said things like "I'm too busy" or "I have some other business to attend to." And before they knew it, it was time for them to go home.
The officers who worked under Mustang gathered just outside the office, peeping through a narrow crack in the door. After spending some time staring out the window, their superior finally settled on the red sofa beside his desk. They tried listening for any kind of sound from the room but the only thing they could see was the back of the General's head.
"What's going on in his head now?" Breda hissed.
"Did he screw up during his date with the nurse from downstairs?" Havoc asked, still sounding bitter at the fact that Maria agreed to go out with the General and not him.
"Highly unlikely. He must have been possessed by some evil force." Fuery added with fear in his voice.
"Oh, grow up." Hawkeye interrupted as she smacked her fellow officer on the head.
"This isn't normal. The General slacks off a lot during work but it never did come to this…or did it?" Farman whispered from behind the other officers.
"I guess he's still upset." Riza sighed.
"Upset?" the men around her chorused.
"That Edward Elric didn't see him personally to request for his leave of absence."
"So you're telling us he just left him a note?" Havoc and Breda exclaimed.
Hawkeye nodded.
"So why doesn't he just go after Ed and reprimand him like the last time?"
"It's not that easy, Fuery. As General, he needs to keep a good image. Going after a subordinate whom he can't control won't do his reputation any good." Riza Hawkeye seemed to be the only person in Central who could understand Mustang to this extent.
Meanwhile, inside the office, sitting comfortably on the soft sofa, oblivious to all the talking about him, Mustang was fast asleep.
The very next day, back in the auto mail shop/ house in Resembool, Fletcher and Russell were bidding the Elric brothers their farewell.
"We're off to help people with our skills in alchemy. Thanks a lot for letting us stay here big sister Winry. We hope to see you again soon Ed and Al." Fletcher said happily as he waved at his friends.
"We're more than happy to have you here. Come by as often as you like." Winry replied.
"I'm going to walk with them to the station, brother." Al said as he helped Fletcher with their luggage.
"Thanks a lot everyone. And Ed…"
"Hmm? What is it Russell?"
"Take care of yourself."
The taller blonde reached out to shake Ed's left hand. Ed obliged and smiled at Russell.
"Get off at the right station next time." Ed teased Russell with his usual mocking expression.
Russell squeezed Ed's human hand harder than he intended to and this made Ed cry out in pain. Once the guests and Al were gone, the atmosphere in the house suddenly changed. Closing the door behind her, Winry looked at Ed who went in ahead and was now sitting on the sofa that faced the door.
"So what's the matter, Ed?" the young woman asked from where she stood by the door.
"What do you mean?" he blinked innocently at Winry's question.
"Don't play dumb with me. I know you Edward Elric. You'd never come home just to say hello."
"You know me that well huh?" Ed sighed as he turned away from Winry.
"Is this about Roy?" she asked, walking towards Ed's side.
"That sarcastic perverted promotion-driven general who does nothing but sleep in his office all day? No, it's not about him."
Winry noticed the change in Ed's tone when he talked about Mustang. It sounded a bit more cheerful to a certain degree.
"Still no progress with him eh? I know you've always had this big crush on him since he first came here almost five years ago."
"I DO NOT HAVE A CRUSH ON THAT USELESS EGOISTIC BASTARD!" the enraged state alchemist stood up and shook his metal fist with his back hunched. This made Winry giggle at Ed's display of anger.
"Come to think of it, you never failed to mention Roy Mustang in any of the letters you sent me while you were in Central. They were mostly about insults and complaints but then again, it was about Roy." The young woman said thoughtfully. This angered Ed more.
"Why don't you just admit it, Ed? You actually like the guy even though he used your talents in alchemy to get promoted." Winry teased, giggling at every word she said.
"Shut up. You don't have to remind me. It's just that Al and I have been working together on a lead to an alternative method to perform human transmutation without the philosopher's stone. I still want to get my old limbs back and Al was nice enough to help with the research. But we needed classified documents that only Mustang has access to. In return, the stupid bastard wants me to report all of our findings directly to him every single day."
"And what's wrong with that, Ed?"
"Since I spend the whole day doing research with Al, the only time I could report to Mustang is when he's off work so I have to drag myself all the way to his place everyday. It was less than pleasant for me to report to him then but now it's just plain awkward."
Ed took a moment to think. His childhood friend just stood there waiting for the young man to speak again.
"Although I prefer to talk about work to get the job over with, Mustang wastes time talking about himself and women. He even told me about a bad experience he had when he kissed his date after eating spicy cuisine."
Ed was still fuming as he told his friend all the nonsense he had to put up with in Central. Winry couldn't help but sweat a drop and laugh at the things Ed said.
"Maybe he just wants to get to know you, Ed. Have you ever thought of it that way? You've been working under him for this long and you guys know zilch about each other."
"That bigheaded bastard doesn't care about anything and anybody but himself."
Ed knew that was a lie but insulting the General like this made him very happy for some reason. Winry rested her case; Ed still has a huge crush on the General and he was feeling weird now that the two of them were getting close.
The Elric brothers spent three days in Resembool but as much as they wanted to prolong their stay, Ed knew very well that he was still a dog of the military and that he had obligations to fulfill. Having said their goodbyes to Winry and their Aunt, they boarded the train to Central. The trip back had been uneventful, it was rather boring actually. The brothers spent most of their time talking or playing cards. Soon enough, they realized that their vacation had officially ended when they stepped off the train. Major Armstrong was there to meet them, waving a large muscled arm to get their attention.
With his usual pink glowing stars around him, he greeted the brothers with such passion and sincere glee.
"Edward Elric, Alphonse Elric, I do hope you boys had a pleasant vacation." Armstrong saluted them.
"I'm sure Mustang is going to make another long and sarcastic lecture when I get back in HQ." Ed sighed under his breath.
"Well, it's your fault for not telling him directly that you were leaving, brother."
"He never would've agreed to give me a vacation even if I did tell him in person. Damn bastard is the worst slave driver in the world." The young state alchemist said with his head down.
"Pardon my intrusion but the General asked me to take you two to HQ as soon as you arrived."
"We don't have a choice do we?" Ed said in submission.
The drive back to headquarters was unnervingly quick. Ed could imagine the smug look on Mustang's face. The General wore the same expression whenever Ed was around to deliver his report or when he used to ask for information about the philosopher's stone.
The car stopped in front of the big building located in the heart of town. Central headquarters never looked so gloomy, a dark cloud hovered over the building. When they got off the vehicle, they saw Lieutenant Hawkeye waiting for them outside the main entrance.
"Alphonse Elric." She said sternly.
"Y-yes ma'am." Al's shaky voice was barely audible.
"Come with me. There are matters I would like to discuss with you alone."
Al agreed to go with the Lieutenant without question.
This was the last place Ed wanted to be in and to make matters worse, he got separated from Al but he really had no choice. Mustang had all the right connections and the young blonde could easily be found if he went AWOL. Ed knew the hallways well and his heart was beating faster with every step he took.
"This is crazy. This isn't the first time I did something 'impulsive'. Why do I feel so stressed out now? Mustang can't do anything to me. He has his stupid reputation to keep. But wait, he put his reputation on the line to defeat Pride before-"
"Here we are." Armstrong interrupted Ed's thoughts. Ed just realized that they were standing right outside Mustang's office.
gulp
Ed's heart sank. He was certain that seeing the person waiting for him on the other side of that door was not going to be pleasant. At some point the Fullmetal Alchemist wished 'The Gate' would appear before him to save him from the General. But of course, Ed was exaggerating. He felt like such a wuss for even thinking about such a thing.
The door opened and the bright afternoon light from the room shined through.
What awaited Ed on the other side?
-to be continued-
Notes: Though they were few, thanks so much for the reviews. I really felt some chemistry between Ed and Russell but I think it was only a one sided thing in the series (aww). This is officially the longest chapter I've ever written. Congratulate me yay . Maybe I can use the length of this chapter as an excuse to not update this fic right away? wink wink Comments and Reviews are appreciated. Thanks for reading :D
PS. It's not that I'm some kind of review whore or anything but to be honest, I really got some good ideas from the reviews. For those who reviewed, you'll probably see my point in the next chapter :D